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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. face — to confront
  4. game — a match
  5. rock — a stone
  6. rock — music
  7. swing — in golf
  8. swing — to play on
  9. pass — a permit
  10. degree — from a university
  11. cold — not warm
  12. swing — music
  13. cold — an illness
  14. game — wild animals
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. degree — an amount
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. face — to point toward
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. degree — temperature

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com